Cook’s notes
Among the countless variants of silog dishes, chosilog is probably one of the least ubiquitous. The reason? Spanish chorizo is pricey so chosilog does not exactly qualify as carinderia fare.
But, for homecooking, we can indulge. If not everyday, at least, once in a while. And this breakfast dish is so worth the premium price of good chorizo. And you don’t need a lot to make this rice dish.
Spanish chorizos or Spanish-style chorizos are available canned (packed in lard), chilled or frozen. How many chorizos you need depends on their size as well how much you can consume.
Frozen chorizo is used here. Rendered fat from the sausages is an essential part of cooking the rice so you’ll need enough sausages to get sufficient amount of fat. If using canned chorizo, just measure enough lard from the can to get the amount you need to make the spice base for the rice.
When sauteeing the spice base for the rice, is no need to cook the garlic in oil for a long time because Spanish-style chorizos already contain a lot of spices. So, don’t go overboard with the garlic. You want a hint of garlic in the rice and not overwhelm the dish with too much of it. Go easy on the salt and pepper too because you are cooking the rice in highly seasoned fat.
Sausage and tomato rice
Ingredients
- 2 to 4 Spanish or Spanish-style chorizos
- 1½ tablespoons fat rendered from chorizos
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
- 1 pinch dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 2 cups cooked day-old rice
- 2 tablespoons tomato sauce (optional)
- salt
- pepper
- 2 eggs fried sunny side up
- torn cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Slice the chorizos into rings.
- In an oil free pan, fry both sides of the chorizo slices until lightly browned along the edges and a pool of fat has formed around them.
- Scoop out the chorizo slices and set aside.
- Measure the required amount of rendered fat (you may store the rest, if any, in a jar in the fridge) and reheat.
- Over medium heat, saute the chopped onion with the oregano until the onion bits appear translucent.
- Stir in the garlic and continue sauteeing for half a minute.
- Add the rice and toss quickly.
- Pour in the tomato sauce, if using, and sprinkle in salt and pepper.
- Cook, tossing the rice around, until heated through.
- Add the chorizo slices to the rice and cook for another half a minute.
- Taste the rice and adjust the seasonings, as needed.
- To serve, place the fried eggs on plates and ladle the sausage and tomato rice on the side. Optionally, sprinkle with torn cilantro before serving.
Mexican red rice (arroz rojo)
